himespau 

Someone just needs to come up with a way of impregnating a cf frame with solar panels to trickle charge the battery and you'll no longer have that problem. Hey, I should put that in the next big thing in cycling thread, or just see if I can get a patent. Pcad, you draw me up some good pictures, and I'll cut you in.

FlashBazbo

For me, in 2 years and 12,000 miles with Di2, it never required any maintenance or cable replacements - very unlike my cable-actuated systems. Di2 is a set-it-and-forget-it system.

Snydermann

Oh my, yes I do. It's so much work to reach down and flip that lever to remove a wheel. I can't wait till Shimano adds remote-control electronic solenoid-activated wheel release mechanisms to the Di2 group. Just press a button on the remote control and a battery inside the hub sends an electric signal to the axle mounted solenoid releasing the tension on the axle. Awesome!

Hopefully Shimano will promote the hell out of it and give it to the pro teams to use. The more expensive it is the better it will be and when I buy it I'll get a huge rush of adrenalin knowing I now have the latest and greatest component on my bike!

ilovecycling

While I see the analogy you are trying to make here, I don't think it really applies. The hand plane gives you more precision and control where it might be useful when fitting that cabinet door. A mechanical shifting system, however, does the exact opposite. It just leaves more room for error and there are no performance benefits. Di2 on the other hand gives you more precision and leaves virtually no room for error.

Beyond charging a battery every 1700 miles, what maintenance are you talking about that is "over and above" cable maintenance?

It's all excuses and resistance of change. Human nature really. Fact: cables require more maintenance and have a higher chance of failure than Di2.

Nachoman was still able to shift in the rear and get home. Is that really the end of the world?

RT

No, but is sure is a pain in the ass, mainly because it wasn't mechanical failure, it was human error. Just sayin' that your 'fact' about cable failure is flawed. It is not splitting the atom, and I can change a cable faster than you can charge your battery.

ilovecycling

I disagree. Unwrapping bar tape, changing the cable out and probably trimming new housing, taping the housing to the proper place on the bars, then re-wrapping the bars is MUCH more work than plugging in a battery. It probably takes a good hour for most people to do a proper job. I don't know about you, but I'd rather charge a battery.

zigmeister

Now if Shimano can get the weight down another 300gms on their groupset...maybe they will have something.

RT

I don't have to unwrap my tape to thread my cable - that's nuts. It sounds like you are trying to find exceptions to an obviously superior maintenance process? Why do you unwrap your bars? The cable threads perfectly through the already installed housing.

If you want to carry a spare battery instead of a spare cable, well, that's up to you as far as weight and cost. If you forget to charge it, it won't do you any good, which is the point of this thread.

ilovecycling

Superior maintenance process? That's ridiculous. Did you forget that you also have to adjust the cable tension and tune the RD/FD for optimal shifting, which requires tools? How can you possibly be making an argument for any of that being easier maintenance than putting a battery in a charging cradle?

For crying out loud, it's 1 charge every 1700 miles! It's virtually maintenance free.

Nachoman

And don't forget 1700 miles was with over 85,000 feet of climbing. I bet you could double that amount of mileage if you lived in the flats and shifted less.

Nerull

You can't charge a battery once a month? How do you remember how to get dressed in the morning?

dbf73

I'm still on the original charge but my tentative schedule is to charge when I turn over the thousands digit on my computer odometer. This gives me lots of safety margin. If I were going to do a long trip away from home like Ragbrai, I'd just charge before going

patentcad

Could you be a bigger Sram Shill? Is that even possible?

roflmao147

wasn't the certain rider who overtook him and went on to win the tour also using sram?

rufvelo

I hope some of the guys here are filing air every week at least....if it isn't too much trouble.

Snydermann

There just seems to be something to me that feels fundamentally odd when I think about using a battery and a micro-processor to shift my bicycle . . . . my bike! . . . I don't know why I feel that way, I can appreciate the technology, but it just feels odd inside for some reason.

ilovecycling

That's fine. I can live with that argument. However, those who suggest that Di2 requires more maintenance or leaves more room for problems are just kidding themselves.

Just to provoke some thought over the comment you just made, where do you draw the line with what "feels" right or wrong on a bike? Did brifters ruin cycling for you? Would you rather reach to your down tube and take your hands off the handlebars every time you want to shift a gear? What about carbon fiber? Oversized handlebars? etc etc

It's called progression people. None of it takes away from the fact that to propel the bicycle, you have to use your legs and give it some effort. Di2, power meters, aero frames and wheels... none of it takes away from the pleasure of using your legs to propel the bicycle. Get over it and admit it's the price that's holding you back from getting it. The least you could do is be honest with yourselves. That's why I don't have it. I refuse to pay $3k for DA Di2, but you better believe if it was half the price I'd have it. That's why I'm excited for Ultegra Di2. And don't even start with the weight nonsense. You weight weenies can drop the extra pound off your gut before you complain about the extra weight of Ultegra Di2. Not to mention bikes are so light these days it shouldn't be a problem to have a sub-15 lb. bike with Ultegra Di2.

Trsnrtr

I'm not going to shell out the cash for Di2, but I still think it's an ingenious idea and would be happy to use it. I remember when we went from friction to indexing and some of us claimed it would never catch on.

Anyway, good info here on the system. Thanks to the first adopters for the real life info.

Full disclaimer: I ride Campy.

patentcad

I wonder if it feels strange for this guy using that magic box to communicate. It's just not the same as smoke signals.

JimF22003

I've charged my Di2 battery 4 (maybe 5?) times in a bit over 3000 miles. Only once was the battery indicator even down into the Red. I've never gotten to the point where either of the shifters stopped working.

I get that this is a fun thing to mock, but in case anybody is serious wondering whether this is a real issue or not... it's not.

patentcad

Correct.

lazerzxr

Ive had Di2 for thousands of miles, my thoughts are:

1) It shifts faster than any cable system
2) It shifts better than any cable system - no your cables dont shift peferctly anyway, you just think they do until you try something better
3) It doesn't require less maintenance than cables - it requires none at all.
4) Charging isnt maintenance, you unclip the battery, plug it in, come back an hour later and clip it on again. It takes seconds not minutes, that doesnt even count as maintenance.
5) It requires no adjustment - EVER
6) It shifts much quicker between the smallest sprockets than cable systems that have little spring tension at that end of the movement
7) Front ato trim is cool - even if i never use trim on my cable bike, its a nice touch
8) Your battery will never run low without you realising if you place the control unit in a visible position while riding
9) It is the easist system in the world to adjust while travelling at 30mph - I only did this when it was new, i have never needed to since.
10) With internal cables it makes a ver neat looking bike.

I will never go back to cables no matter what the haters say. Di2 is simply better in every way.

roadwarrior

Could you be a bigger Di2 shill. Is that even possible?

The difference between us is I actually understand and know what I am talking about. You like bright shiny things.

I can get it, I can get it for a song, I've ridden it, I rode it a long time before you did. I do not see enough of a difference between what I have and the extra expense and added weight of Di2. Since I've been doing this a while, I'll go with my instincts over a rider who buys the latest and the greatest because it looks cool and people will stare at his bike on group rides.

C'mon...you bought 7900 and I warned you about how bad it sucked, and you still defended it. Latest and greatest...

RT

You would not even have this thread to post in if it wasn't an issue. It's an issue because we are human. I have forgotten a few times to charge my Magicshine and run out of light in the dead of winter. It happens. Unfortunately, aside from a dyno-hub, there isn't a choice for lighting. I'll stick to my antiquated cable system and if I have trouble, will call tech support with my soup can and string telephone.

Nerull - We all forget stuff. Please don't tell me you've never forgotten anything.


...and I ride to work in my pajamas. I guess if I got Di2, I would stop forgetting things

Snydermann

What I see here is you've taken a completely mechanical bicycle and now started adding batteries and micro-electronics to make it work "better".

Would pro football embrace an electronic football with built-in electronic stabilization to make it fly better?

Would a symphony approve of a violinist with electronic auto-tune built into his instrument so he could play better?

How about electronic sights on bows for Olympic competition? Certainly bows have come a long way with technology. Oh, wait, electronic sights and lenses are illegal in competition. I guess Shimano isn't involved or they'd get the rules changed.

Some things just don't seem right unless they remain purely mechanical, in my opinion. Like the football, like the archery sight, like the violin and . . . like the bicycle.